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Rationale

In writing this piece, I considered and used concepts from many of my favourite science fiction authors and television programmes. Movies such as “Logan’s Run”, which depicts a city entirely run by a computer that lies to the inhabitants was the initial spark for my idea. Another influence, giving rise to the biological mutation of humanity, was ABC program Catalyst’s
special on the topic of evolutionary mutation and humanity’s role effecting it. I also took inspiration from my friend, Kate Orman, who writes futuristic science fiction novels and scripts for a living. She has written several of my favourite Doctor Who novels (“Sleepy”, “Set Piece”, “The Room With No Doors”, virgin publishing) and excels in creating (amongst other things) dark, claustrophobic and alien environments. Other story elements, such as hologram projectors and cybernetics are common in the genre of futuristic science fiction, and fitted in perfectly with my plot.

This script, as with many effective scripts, is minimalist in stage direction. I tried to rely on the actor to fill in the gaps, as this will result in a far more fluid and believable performance. It was relatively easy to switch my mind into script writing rather than prose, and found the change in writing format actually helped my change in style. This dark, rather depressing mood is not my usual one, and the fact I was writing in script format was a constant reminder not to go off on a tangent or insert an unusual joke.

The beginning scenes, in the darkness underneath the city, were surprisingly easy to write in script form. Without the addition of adjectives and actions, and simply the character’s verbal reaction to the environment, I think the reader feels a much more real sense of what is happening. The speed at which the words are read is far easier for the reader to control, thus they pace the action to their own rhythm and will not find it rushed or dragged out. Their own mental picture of the event taking place is not contradicted by any other input, allowing them to concentrate on the words themselves.

The main concepts in this script are human mutation and evolution, curiosity and the desire for freedom, simultaneous divergent evolution and the stagnation that humanity may undergo if not allowed to progress at its natural rate. In this piece I tried to explore these themes whilst presenting a character the reader would sympathise with, and to explore the psyche of this character. I speculated using my personal opinions on our current worldly society as to what the future may contain.

I aimed for a relatively wide audience, allowing intrigue and tension to attract the readers’ attention and hoping that some of the issues raised may produce some later thought. Seen in a societal context, this script could be seen as a warning, a prediction of a bleak future should the computer-dependant and overly complacent nature of our peoples continue down their current path. Whilst the future setting is important as to establish the society from which the plot stems, the characters and concepts presented are easily applied to a more contemporary setting. There are two overall purposes of this script – to entertain, and to encourage thought on the human condition and what the future may hold.

I decided to keep the characterisation as simple and contrasted as possible. There are only two characters, and they are entirely different. One is filled with wonder, and is very human in their speech patterns and behaviour. The other is harsh, cold, literal and seemingly in control. The interaction between such different characters is not only interesting but easily understandable. In a script it is important not to have similar characters should they be blurred, and I’m confident that should I remove the prompts stating who is speaking, the reader should still be able to differentiate between Silas and the Hologram. Writing elements such as repetition strengthened my characterisation, especially in the case of the Hologram and it’s cold reactions to Silas’s panic.

The structure of this script is relatively simple: the beginning is tense and filled with unanswered questions, so as to attract and hold the reader’s attention. It is intensely personal, so that the character of Silas is quickly established and the reader may identify with him. I leave explanations as late in the piece as possible so that the tension from the beginning is held as long as possible. I leave it on a joyous note, an open ending that gives way to reader speculation on what happens next.

Also included in my submission is a comic adaptation of the first few pages of script. I was curious to see how the words would be effected with visuals surrounding them, and as I had two hours spare time I decided to draw using Photoshop. I also included a concept sketch of the ‘mutant’ Silas’s hand, as movie scripts are often submitted with character and costume design suggestions.

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